Sitting on teh front portch of the FBO at West Yellowstone, Montana (KYST) and I think the young man behind the counter was right: this place may be the best kept secret in back-country flying. I'll elaborate in a couple of paragraphs, but first, a wrap up of how we got here.

When last we checked in our our beloved mode of transport, she was undergoing repairs to the ASI and tach. We got to the Custer Airport (KCUT) and got the verdict from Ben the mechanic. An insect (a mud dauber, to be specific) had decided that the pitot tube would make a nice place to call home. And the recently-installed tach had been installed incorrectly at the engine, necessitating a new cable to be shipped to Sierra Delta Aviation. Total bill (including two days car rental): $400. Rob can't believe how reasonable the price was, so I'm sending a big shout out to Ben and Laurie who just bought the biz and are crossing their fingers that they can make a go of it.

The airport was a hive of activity this morning, with the local gents all in plaid shirts sipping coffee enjoying the morning's entertainment of us tourists packing up and heading out. "The Flying Grandmother" of Estes Park, Colorado was there with her son and grandkids, and she's the one who tipped us off to this garden spot at the entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

The flight over was mostly dry and brown and uninspiring til we got to the mountains which provided enough turbulance to get Michael green around the gills. We flew just east of Yellostone Lake and landed on the long, wide strip here, and were guided to the camping area at the north end of the field. LUXURIOUS accomodations! Improved campsites, with a picnic table, fire pit and grate, adn a pop-up trailer converted to a shower. They even have an assortment of bikes available to grab and ride along a gravel path the 1.5 miles into town. We took advantage of the bikes to get groceries and (another) buffalo burger, and now we're contemplating dinner, which will be augmented by a much-awaited beer. Lotsa puffy white clouds and warm sun hitting my face, but it's 7:00 pm, so that won't be lasting much longer.

Tomorrow, a return visit to Johnson Creek. (And we know why they call it that, don't we?)